


At the Akamatsu Residence

by AdmantCrow



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Acceptance, Actual crush though, Alternate Universe - Non-Despair (Dangan Ronpa), Anxiety, Christmas, F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Family, Holidays, New Years, Pining
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-28
Updated: 2018-09-28
Packaged: 2019-07-18 13:45:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16119704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AdmantCrow/pseuds/AdmantCrow
Summary: Kaede needs a fake girlfriend. Maki really loves Kaede. So the two are off to Kaede's house for the Christmas and New Year break, trying to hold together a lie to keep Kaede's parents of her back.Maki has other ideas, though.





	At the Akamatsu Residence

The first thing Maki thought, was that this seemed like a crazy situation out of anime or something like that.   
  
The second thing Maki thought, was that she probably would’ve been more likely to agree if she already wasn’t frustratingly in love with Kaede.   
  
So when one day, after classes had ended and the two were just hanging out in Kaede’s room, Maki’s object of affection had surprised her with the following question, she’d blanked out for a good thirty seconds.   
  
“Hey, Maki, can you pretend to be my girlfriend for two weeks?”   
  
The question had almost come out of nowhere - Christmas vacation had arrived, and they had vaguely been talking about their plans. Kaede had been going on about how she was heading home to Tokyo for a couple of weeks, so Maki had told her how she was going to stay back at Hope’s Peak, due to obvious reasons. Wrapped up in blankets on Kaede’s bed, the two best friends chatted about this and that, and then just like that, Kaede hit her with that question.   
  
“ _ What. _ ” Maki said a bit louder then she meant, hoping her cheeks weren’t going as red as they felt. “ _ What!?” _ Kaede lent across the bed, clasping her hands together as if praying to some invisible deity. Maybe Atua.    
  
“I thought if I caught you by surprise, you’d agree.” Kaede giggled a little to herself, which seemed utterly unfitting considering her insane request. “I know it sounds crazy, but I really need you to pretend to my girlfriend over the break!” Maki narrowed her eyes, trying to process what the hell was going on. A minute ago she’d been thinking about how relaxed she was, how nice it was she was free from class and all.   
  
“That’s a idiotic strategy Kaito would use.” Maki sighed. Sure, she’d been thinking about how quiet things were going to be, considering she was the only besides Ryoma staying at Hope’s Peak over the break from their class, and maaaaybe she’d been thinking about how much she’d miss Kaede, but there is a difference between spending time with a friend (despite Maki’s feelings) and  _ pretending to be her girlfriend! _ .   
  
“You’re asking me, but you’re not telling me  _ why _ , Kaede.” Maki huffed. Kaede sighed, leaning against Maki as if the weight of the world was resting on her shoulders. “And hopefully it’s not some stupid dumbass of a reason.”   
  
“The truth is… it’s my parents. We’re having a family get-together for Christmas, and they were constantly saying ‘Oh, you should bring your partner with you’, which put me into this-” Maki held up a hand to stop Kaede’s rambling, feeling like she was missing a crucial piece of the puzzle.   
  
“Kaede. Slow down.” SHe felt her heart beat a little faster as she asked her next question. “Do you have some secret partner?” Kaede just went red in the face and started laughing, waving off Maki’s concerns.   
  
“No, no, of course not.” She stretched her arms out, as if to show herself of. “Can you imagine me, the piano freak, getting any kind of significant other?” She giggled again, and Maki felt a pang of relief, along with a small note of pity for Kaede’s total lack of self-worth. And then a second thought raised in her head, one that was a lot more concerning.   
  
“Wait - if your parents think you have a partner,  _ have you been telling them that w-we’ve been going out!?” _ Hilariously, this thought messed with her even more then her previous question. What the hell did Kaede tell her parents, anyway?   
  
“I-I never said specifics!” Kaede stammered. “I just got fed with them constantly asking about all the people in my class and in the end I just said I was dating someone without giving them anyone in particular.” Kaede’s eyes darted to the side quickly, but Maki didn’t press her further. She was sure Kaede wasn’t telling her everything, but she had bigger concerns.    
  
“So, why did you pick me to ask?” Maki asked her, shuffling under the blanket. “I’m sure Tenko or Miu would’ve gone if you asked, you know they’ve both hit on you half a dozen times each.” Kaede giggled, shrugging her shoulders.   
  
“I don’t know about that, they’re just friends. And honestly not the kind of people I’d want meeting my family.” She giggled a bit,and soon Maki found herself laughing in agreement. Seeing Miu meeting Kaede’s family - sounded pretty good to her, honestly.   
  
“So, uh.” Maki played with her hair, her most classic coping mechanism. “Why did you choose me, then?” Kaede giggled again, her cheek as pink as her sweater.    
  
“W-Well, you  _ are _ my best friend, and I guess if I’m going to introduce someone to my family I think I’d like it to be someone so, um, cool and beautiful and strong…” She trailed off, looking over at the TV away from Maki’s face. Kaede’s words of praise played with her heart, andMaki felt her fingers grip the blanket. A huge part of her wanted to run away from the situation of Kaede’s family - it was a setting she didn't belong in, least of all as Kaede’s fake girlfriend. But despite all that, seeing Kaede’s pink cheeks and utter nervousness about the situation, Maki realised that Kaede really did need her, and think of her as the best person to help her.   
  
The thoughts of how many times Kaede had helped her - coaxing her out of her cold shell, even a little, taking her side in arguments, hell, to Maki even being around a little to talk was huge. With all this in mind, Maki really couldn’t think of another answer.   
  
“F-Fine.” Maki looked up at the roof, hiding from Kaede’s beaming smile. “J-Just for the two week break.That’s all.” And with a bang, the two girls fell off the bed as Kaede gave her a messy hug of joy, thanking her all the while.   
  
“You’re actually the best, Maki!”   
  
Maki didn’t hate how nice the compliments felt, coming from someone like Kaede.

* * *

 

Maki didn’t really know what to bring in her bag to Kaede’s house, besides enough clothes. She packed a bunch of books, anticipating a lot of her normal behaviour of eschewing human contact for solitary time with her reading. In the two days she had before she and Kaede had to leave, Maki felt rather stressed - she debated over and over again if it was a good idea for her to come, and if considering her rather pent-up feelings for Kaede, if this wasn’t a huge mistake overall. Kaito was relentless in his teasing about the whole situation, being the only person who Maki trusted with how she felt, but in the end he was supportive, telling her this was a great opportunity.   
  
“Even if this whole thing wasn’t crazy as nuts,” Kaito yawned, lazily lying on his side on Maki’s bed as she packed. “You two never get any time to yourselves outside class. We’ve got class trips, or you go out with me and Shuichi, but never just you two.”   
  
“That’s because I never know what’s going to happen with that weirdo.” Maki huffed, shoving another dress into her bag.   
  
“But you put up with me, king of the nutcases,  so that can’t be true.” Kaito gave a great, booming laugh, which just served to irritate his best friend.   
  
“W-Well, you know how I am, when it comes to her. I can’t be normal when I’m alone with her, outside of this place.” She sighed, loudly. “Even if it’s not real, I don’t think Kaede’s parents would like someone like me dating their daughter.” Kaito also sighed, getting up off the bed.    
  
“Maki-roll.” He planted a supportive hand on her shoulder. “You aren’t the person you used to be, you haven’t been for a year and a half, ever since you came here.” He gave a huge grin, which honestly did help the mixed feelings in Maki’s chest. “And just think.” He winked. “If they do love you, even as a lie, think of how much they’ll love you if you’re actually dating Kaede!” Maki gave him a playful hit to the legs, calling him a dumbass as usual, Kaito laughing to himself as he excused himself from the room.   
  
The man was a dumbass, true, but when it came to his friends, he knew exactly what he was talking about.   
  


* * *

 

  
The trip to Tokyo took a few hours on the train from Hope’s Peak, and Maki expected it to be a good three or so hours of quiet awkwardness between her and Kaede. And sure, there was a good ten minutes or so where they just sat in their seats, not saying anything, before slowly Kaede started asking Maki about her preparations, and Maki asked about hers. And very quickly, the conversation became natural again, giving Maki a feeling that this wasn’t going to be as hard as she thought. 

]   
  
“What was Christmas like, back at the orphanage?” Maki raised her eyebrows at Kaede’s question. “Sorry.” Kaede mumbled, realising her mistake. “I know talking about that is hard.” Maki sighed, waving her off.   
  
“It’s fine, you don’t need to worry about things like that.” Maki sighed. Kaede always did worry too much about brining people’s moods down. “It was pretty… low-key, I guess? I was the oldest, so I usually was the one who’d pass out the cheap presents the kids got.”   
  
“Oooh! I’m sure the kids would’ve thought you’d make a great christmas elf or something!” Kaede giggled, but that quickly subsided when Maki averted her eyes, her ears going red. “...Maki, you didn’t-”   
  
“It was only one Christmas! I was only ten, and everyone was sad at Christmas, so the owner thought it would raise spirits if I wore… that!” She didn’t describe exactly  _ what  _ she had worn, but Kaede could tell that whatever had happened had possibly half-traumatised Maki. “A-A-Anyway.” Maki quickly changed the topic of conversation. “What is  _ your _ family’s Christmas like?” Kaede stretched out her legs, trying to think.   
  
“Pretty normal, I suppose? They  _ always _ are wanting me to play the piano when we’re getting together, which I don’t mind, but I don’t want to spend all Christmas and New Year playing piano when I get to spend it with you!” Kaede grinned again, and Maki felt her legs go weak. She’d been so focussed on the fact that she was being her crush’s fake girlfriend, that she didn’t even think about the fact that she was going to be a part of a family’s holidays.    
  
When was the last time she’d spent the holidays with someone else? It must’ve been years, ever since she’d left the orphanage.    
  
“Kaede.” Maki mumbled, looking away from the countryside flying past her window to look at Kaede. “What are your family like?” Kaede laughed nervously, which Maki decided to take as a bad sign.   
  
“W-Well…” She scratched her cheek, trying to find the words. “You know how I’m weird?” Maki immediately agreed with that, which made Kaede puff out her cheeks in mock annoyance. “Jerk.” She giggled. “Anyway, my family is sorta just as weird, just in different ways. Like Mom trying to stuff as much food as humanly possible into someone at all times, or Dad’s incessant over dramatisation of everything.   
  
“Huh.” That didn’t sound  _ too _ bad, at least compared to the kind of people Maki had to deal with back at Hope’s Peak. Hell, compared to someone like Kaito, they sound downright normal. “W-Who else did you say were coming, at least just for Christmas?” Kaede closed her eyes, trying to remember which relatives were coming for the actual Christmas holiday.    
  
“Well, my grandfather will be there for at least a few days, since travelling is a bigger deal for him.” Maki couldn’t argue with that, and typically older people were the one kind of people she actually felt natural around. “I think the only people coming on Christmas Day itself are my Mom’s sister and her family, with the two kids.” Maki felt a jolt in her stomach - just as she  _ could _ deal with older people, young kids were the one kind of person she  _ didn’t _ feel comfortable dealing with. All those years in the orphanage, all that time ago, it still sat badly in her. The memories of all those people she left behind after becoming an assassin…   
  
“Hey.” Kaede gripped Maki’s hand tenderly, giving it a light squeeze. Maki broke out of her anxiety, looking at her not-girlfriend. “I know it’s not fair that I asked you to do this, and that you had every right to refuse, but thank you so much, Maki, for doing this for me.” And then she smiled that beautiful smile that always seemed to calm Maki down, her worries about children and families melting away. “And even if it’s a lie, I think  my family will absolutely love you! Maybe it’ll make you actually want to date me!” Kaede giggled to herself, excusing herself to use the bathroom as she did so. Maki just smiled at the retreating back of Kaede.   
  
If only she knew.   


* * *

 

  
“ **Kaede!!”** As soon as the front door opened, Kaede was completely enveloped by the embrace of her mother, who looked rather like a middle-aged version of Kaede, if slightly more tired looking, though that may have been the twilight. “It’s been too long since I’ve seen your face.”   
  
“Mpphm!” Kaede yelled through her mother’s arms. Breaking free from her embrace, Kaede caught her breath. “Nice to see you too, Mom.” She grinned. “And this.” Maki felt a jolt run through her body as Kaede seized her hand and pulled Maki up to the door. Every part of Maki urged her to just bolt and run all the way back to Hope’s Peak, but Kaede’s hand held her still.    
  
“U-Uh.” Maki gulped, not sure what to say. “Nice to meet you, M-Miss Akamatsu.” She looked just to the left, into the Akamatsu Residence. And before she could react, she too was enveloped in Kaede’s mother’s ams.    
  
“M-Mom!” Kaede could feel the panic growing,  since she hadn’t expected her Mom to hug Maki right out of the gate. Like, sure she’d seen plenty of Maki in the past year, but it wasn’t as simple as that. Maki was as still as a statue in the grip, and when Mrs. Akamatsu released her, Maki took one big step back, a whole ton of mixed emotion etched on her face. Kaede laugher nervously and wrapped an arm around Maki, waving her mother off.   
  
“S-Sorry Mom, Maki’s not really the ‘touchy-feely’ type when it isn’t me.” She tapped her shoe against Maki’s discreetly, Maki realising she should nod.   
  
“Y-Yeah. S-Sorry, you surprised me.” Maki stammered.  Mrs. Akamatsu laughed in a way that was pretty similar to her daughter, and motioned for the two girls to come in.   
  
“I’m sorry, Maki, my dear. I’ve just waited so long to meet you, I became a little overcome by my excitement.” She told Maki as they entered the house. The hallway was flanked on both sides by cabinets stuffed with piano trophies, all for Kaede. She’d heard her play plenty, but sometimes Maki forgot that Kaede was a pretty well renowned piano all over the place.    
  
“W-Well, I thought this would be the best time to bring Maki up to visit for a few weeks.” Kaede said somewhat nervously. “Did we come at a bad time?” Mrs. Akamatsu assured them everything was fine, and the mother and daughter chat for a few moments in the hallway, making Maki feel a little out of place. When was the last time she’d step foot in a family home, as an actual guest? In fact… had she ever? Her friends had all been orphans, and ever since leaving the assassins, she’d lived at Hope’s Peak.   
Today was a day of firsts, it seemed.   
  
“Now, now, let’s not sit around in the hallway chatting!” Mrs. Akamatsu patted Kaede and Maki’s shoulders. “I’ve got dinner ready for the two of you, and your father got home just before you, Kaede.” Kaede seemed to perk up a little, and moved to the kitchen, her mother following behind, leaving Maki alone in the hallway. It just felt  _ wrong _ to move further in, not actually being the guest they thought she were.    
  
“ _ Maybe… it wouldn’t be too bad to run away, this time. _ ” Maki thought to herself. She glanced back at the door, but before she could make any decision, she felt a firm hand grip her own. It was Kaede, beaming.   
  
“Come on, Maki.” She grinned. “We’re all waiting for you.” And that was all it took to make Maki take the next step.

* * *

 

Dinner was pretty informal, but mostly consisted of talking with Kaede’s parents. She didn’t know if Kaede had told them to hold back, but Maki thanked whatever deity that they didn’t pry too much into their ‘relationship’, besides vaguely asking where they had met, which was obvious. She had other problems, though - she had to fall back on her old ‘Ultimate Childcare Giver’ story when they asked why she had attended Hope’s Peak, though Kaede managed to steer the conversation to different topics whenever things got a little much. At the same time, though, she felt bad not really answering any of the questions - it just felt wrong with so much deception. Kaede’s father was  _ very _ inquisitive, though he was very friendly as she did. With a large, stylish pair of glasses and dark hair, he cut a very intimidating figure, but he seemed to be buzzing with joy almost as much his wife.    
  
“Now, Maki, Kaede mentioned to us you normally don’t have many plans around the holidays, don’t you celebrate Christmas with friends, usually?” Mr. Akamatsu asked, Kaede immediately trying to deflect the question.   
  
“It’s… fine, Kaede.” Maki smiled at her fake partner. “I’ve lived alone for the last few years, so I’ve never really celebrated or had anyone to be with at Christmas.” Mrs. Akamatsu frowned.   
  
“That’s just not right, be alone at the end of the year.” She winked at Kaede. “It’s a shame you two girls didn’t attend middle school together. Even if you weren’t together, we would’ve loved to have you join us for the holidays, if you’d be alone.” Maki felt her cheeks grow pink, so she just looked down at her empty plate.   
  
“A-Ah, thank you.” She knew they’d be nice, considering Kaede’s bubbly personality, but these people were downright lovely. “You’re really too kind.”   
  
“But still, it’s simply amazing that you wanted to be with Kaede.” Mr. Akamatsu mused, a smile on his face. “Kaede’s real love was always the piano, she never talked about friends or anything like that until high school. I’m surprised she gave you any attention at all!” Kaede puted and yelled in protest at her Dad’s joke, and her parents simply laughed, which Kaede quickly joined to. The atmosphere was so light and relaxing, it wasn’t long until Maki found herself giggling along with the other three.   
  
It almost felt like she really was Kaede’s girlfriend, on her first visit to the home.   
  
“I-I can’t disagree with that…” Maki murmured, smiling lightly at Kaede, who just frowned at her back. “But when she isn’t geeking out about pianos, she’s probably one of the most fun people to be around, even with how weird she is at times.   
  
“That’s not really a compliment, Maki.” Kaede pouted. Her parents, however, seemed to think the exchange was lovely, simply beaming as the two girls lightly argued.    
  
“She found a good one, didn’t she?” Mrs. Akamatsu whispered to her husband.   
  
“Yeah. She did.” He replied, smiling. “I think, at least, there’s a bit more to this girl then she’s letting on, but at that madhouse of a school, that’s not surprising. Either way…” Looking back at them he nodded. “I think it’ll be good to have some more company this holiday.”    
  


* * *

Maki had a quick shower after dinner, and after awkwardly chatting with Kaede’s parents in the living room whilst Kaede showered, soon found herself feeling quite tired, already nodding off in the armchair. The trip over, and the stress of the lie had worn her down a little bit more than she thought it would. In either case, Kaede emerged from the shower, yawning as well, so it seemed like sleep was on the table.   
  
“Ah, Kaede, your grandfather will be arriving tomorrow!” Mrs. Akamatsu told her daughter. “I’ll be picking him up in the morning, so would you two be able to make lunch? Kaede nodded, nudging Maki in her ribs.    
  
“No problem, Mom. Guess all that time making lunches for the kids at the orphanage does come in hand, right Maki?” Maki avoided her gaze, feeling embarrassment fall over her again. She knew Kaede didn’t mean it, but it wasn’t something she just liked to tell people about right after meeting them. “Uh, I guess we’ll go to bed, then. See you two tomorrow, then!” Maki stood up from the armchair, stifling a yawn.   
  
“Thank you, so much for having me in your home.” Maki bowed slightly, before leaving the room with Kaede.   
  
“The girl’s an orphan?” Mrs. Akamatsu asked her husband. He nodded.   
  
“Seems so. It doesn’t surprise me. Living alone as a teenager? I suppose that’s better then alternative reasons for that.”   
  
“Poor dear. Now I really wish she’d met Kaede years ago. They really could’ve needed each other as a friend, considering their circumstances.”   
  
“Well, considering how natural they are around each other, I think they’ve been really lucky to find each other at all. This is the first time I’ve met them, and they’re lovely together.” The Akamatsu’s agreed.

* * *

 

Somehow, Kaede’s room was exactly how she expected it.  _ Two pianos _ , a few posters of famous pianists, pretty much all piano related paraphernalia. Pretty much just an expanded version of her dorm room over at Hope’s Peak. In some ways, it was kind of endearing. Kaede was digging around in the closet, trying to find something. Maki glanced at a phone - she’d gotten a number of texts from Kaito and Shuichi, but she decided to leave those for the morning.   
  
“I’ll grab the futon for you, I’ve got a bunch of blankets in here as well…” Mak just sat on her bed, contemplating something probably pretty stupid and inappropriate.    
  
“We could, uh.” Maki, played with her hair again, realising exactly how stupid she was being. “Maybe we could, uh, sleep together?” Kaede stopped digging through the closet. Maki could see, even with her back turned, how red Kaede’s ears had gone.   
  
“Wh-Why w-would we do that, I mean-” Kaede spluttered, turning on her heel, her cheeks as red as her ears. “We’re not actually dating, so-” Maki didn’t know if it was her fatigue or the meal she had just eaten, but she felt confident about this, but it wasn’t just for her sake.   
  
“Well, we’ve apparently been dating for a year, right? It’d be weird if I was just sleeping on the floor when visiting, so if you, I mean, we don’t want to blow our cover, wouldn’t it make more sense to do that?” Kaede put her thinking face on for a hot minute, and Maki felt herself inadvertently holding her breath in anticipation.   
  
“Sounds good to me, then!” Kaede’s face was still bright red, but her smile showed she was 100% on board with Maki’s stupid idea. “Mom usually comes in and wakes me up, so we don’t want her asking questions about why you’d be sleeping on the floor!”   
  
It wasn’t long until they were both lying in bed, almost in total darkness. Maki could barely see the outline of Kaede in the pitch black.   
  
“Thanks, so much Maki.” Kaede gave her best friend’s arm a squeeze, which sent Maki’s heart beating. “Things would’ve of been annoying if you hadn’t come with.”   
  
_ “Trust me, Kaede, thank you.”  _ But all she did was smile in the darkness.   
  
“I hope you love Christmas here.” Kaede whispered. “It can get kinda hectic, with Mom’s cooking and my Aunt’s questioning, but it really is wonderful, and…” She kinda of trailed off, giggling to herself.   
  
“What is it, stupid?” Maki said playfully.   
  
“I'm really glad I get to share that fun with someone like you.” And then Kaede turned over and didn’t say anything else, leaving Maki to stew in these new thoughts.   
  
And so here she was, her first night in the Akamatsu residence, lying with Kaede in her bed, their backs lightly touching. Maki gripped the blanket tightly and tucked her chin to her chest, feeling like she was going to burst from her mixed emotions. There wasn’t just the fact that she was faking being Kaede’s girlfriend, or the fact that they were sleeping together, even if it was more akin to a sleepover then anything. It was the way she was treated by Kaede’s family, the kindness they showed to her, and the readiness in which they accepted her as Kaede’s partner, even if it was a lie. It felt like… she was actually part of a family.   
  
As sleep took hold of Maki, Kaede’s snores already growing louder, a single thought grew in Maki’s mind, something she really did believe in. And when, already in fast asleep, Kaede turned over in her sleep and gripped Maki’s arm, making the dark-haired young woman stifle a squeak, it only served to solidify that thought.   
  
_ “I don’t think… with a family like this… I’d mind if this wasn’t a lie at all. _ ” 


End file.
